


Heart Stickers and Cherry Blossoms (We Must Be in an Anime)

by butterflyslinky



Series: Anime Cliches [1]
Category: That Guy with the Glasses/Channel Awesome
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Car Accidents, M/M, Mild Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-26
Updated: 2016-03-26
Packaged: 2018-05-29 05:57:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6362158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/butterflyslinky/pseuds/butterflyslinky
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The best way to get a boyfriend is to fall down the stairs and then walk past the cherry trees. It also helps if he plays the violin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Stop! STOP!”

The orchestra stopped playing as Mr. Finevoice slammed his baton on the podium. “What the heck was that?” he demanded, looking at the first violins.

The violinists shifted apprehensively, trying to figure out the best way to explain why they had screwed up the line for the twelfth time that day. Finally, the first chair raised his hand.

“Yes, Linkara?”

“I believe it was the opening to ‘Take on Me’ played by ten people who haven’t practiced this week, sir,” Linkara said, causing the rest of the first violins to glare at him.

“I agree,” Mr. Finevoice said. “And I believe the agreement was that we would play a pop song if you all worked hard at it. Is that correct?”

“Yes, sir,” Linkara said with a slight smirk. He knew he wouldn’t be getting in trouble for this. After all, he was first chair for a reason.

“So,” Mr. Finevoice said. “Either all of you put in more work, or we cut this number and go back to the classics.” He raised his baton. “From the beginning, please!”

They started again, this time a bit better, though there were still plenty of audible mistakes. Linkara sighed inwardly. It had taken all of his schmoozing and favoritism to get them to play this number, and now they weren’t even trying. Idiots.

The bell rang as they finally made it to the end of the song. Mr. Finevoice yelled after them, “Extra practice tonight! Or I cut the song and none of you will get recommendations for scholarships!”

Linkara looked alarmed, but Mr. Finevoice only raised his eyebrows. “For anyone,” he concluded.

*

“Mr. Buck, would you care to explain this essay?”

Film Brain barely managed not to groan. His teachers never seemed to understand his essays, leading him to spend valuable time after school explaining exactly what he was trying to say. It didn’t help that his essays were often littered with satire that no one besides him ever seemed to think was clever.

“I was explaining why Holden Caulfield is a proto-hipster and it’s his fault we have to suffer through things like Rent,” Film Brain said. “You know, with the pretentious whining and his privileged existence that leaves no room for complaints? He’s just the same as every other dissatisfied upper-middle class white kid who thinks they know better than anyone else.”

Mr. Oan sighed. “Mr. Buck, I understand where you’re coming from, but this essay is fueled too much by emotion and pop culture when it should be fueled by the text itself. I shouldn’t have to ask you to summarize the essay, it should be apparent from the start what you’re trying to say.”

“But doesn’t classic literature fuel pop culture?” Film Brain argued. “Isn’t that a relevant part of the work, what it leads to?”

“That was not the prompt you were asked to write about,” Mr. Oan said. “I would normally accept that, except that your writing is far too unfocused and takes more from those sources than the book. Hence the ‘C’ grade.”

Film Brain sighed. “Can I write it again?” he asked despondently.

“You know I don’t like accepting rewrites,” Mr. Oan said. “However, I will allow you to do so this once, due Monday morning.”

“Fine,” Film Brain said. He took the paper and left the room, intending to go home and rewrite the essay all weekend. It was going to take that long, anyway.

He was so preoccupied that he didn’t notice where he was walking until he missed the first step going down the stairs, which of course meant that he toppled straight down the rest of the staircase, dropped his bag and spilled all of his books and papers, and landed rather painfully on his back at the feet of a tall, looming figure carrying a violin case. Once Film Brain had caught his breath and realized that he could still see, he realized that it was a guy. A very good looking guy.

Fantastic.

The boy with the violin was rather surprised to suddenly have a clumsy blond at his feet. “Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Film Brain gasped, sitting up and making sure he hadn’t broken anything. “Yeah, I’m okay.”

The other boy knelt down and started to gather Film Brain’s books and papers. “That was quite a fall,” he said in concern. “Do you want to see the nurse or anything?”

“I think she’s gone home,” Film Brain said, grabbing the rest of his things. “But I’m okay. Really.” He stood up and finished putting everything back in his bag. “Thank you.”

The boy picked up his violin and smiled. “My name is Linkara,” he said, offering his hand.

“Film Brain,” he mumbled, wondering why he had to make such a fool of himself in front of such a handsome guy. He glanced down shyly. “So…you in the orchestra?” he asked lamely.

“Yeah,” Linkara said. “First chair violin, four years Honors and All-State.” He looked rather proud of himself.

“Cool,” Film Brain said. He didn’t have any sort of accomplishment to talk about, so he settled for smiling slightly.

Linkara smiled back. “You’re not from around here, are you?” he asked.

Film Brain blushed. “No,” he said. “I’m on an exchange from England.”

“How do you like it?”

He shrugged. “It’s all right,” he said. “It’s very different…and the teachers don’t understand what I’m saying half the time.”

Linkara chuckled. “They’re like that with everyone,” he said reassuringly. “They don’t think the same way we do. They’re caught in their own little world where everything is neat and ordered and makes sense and is just the way it’s always been. So when we come in with new ideas and different thinking, they don’t know what to do with it so they just call us stupid and try to make us into them.”

“That…makes sense,” Film Brain admitted. “But it doesn’t change anything.”

“Sure it does,” Linkara said. “If you understand it, you can fight it.”

“How?”

“Say what they want to hear and then laugh at them behind their backs,” Linkara answered. “That’s what we always do.”

“Thanks,” Film Brain said. “I’ll try that.” He turned to leave. “See you.”

“See you.”

*

Linkara played furiously, trying to clear his mind and focus on the music in front of him, but his thoughts kept wandering back to the small boy he had talked to that afternoon. It was already hard enough to get the audition music right without distractions, but for some reason, that boy had made an impression on him.

Which was just stupid. They had talked for maybe five minutes, which was barely long enough to learn each other’s names. There was absolutely no reason for Linkara to be thinking about Film Brain during his precious hour of violin practice.

And yet, the more he tried to focus, the more he kept thinking about golden hair and wide blue eyes and papers and books flying everywhere and yeah, okay, the kid had left more of an impression than Linkara would have liked to admit. He didn’t know why. It wasn’t like there weren’t other blond-haired, blue-eyed guys at school. In fact, come to think on it, Linkara recalled seeing Film Brain around school, usually with a group of sophomores who seemed to spend all of their time studying. True, they had never spoken before, but that shouldn’t have made so much of a difference.

Linkara groaned and stopped playing the audition piece. It was the hardest one, and he certainly couldn’t play it with his mind elsewhere. After a moment of silence, he picked up his violin again and started playing the intro to “Take on Me.” If nothing else, he could be the best in rehearsal tomorrow.

That was better, lighter, faster notes at first, with the long notes of the chorus to help him calm down a bit. After the first verse, he already felt more at ease.

So he had met a cute guy. And said cute guy happened to be a bit of a klutz. That only made him more adorable. And who was to say they couldn’t be friends? That would be good, right? Being friends with an adorable, studious little sophomore from England?

_Take on me…_

_Take on me!_

_Take me on…_

_Take on me!_

Yes. This was going to be just fine.

*

It should not have been a surprise to Film Brain that he ran into Linkara after school again on Monday. After all, they probably both walked this way every day and just hadn’t had a reason to notice each other. But today they did. Linkara smiled and waved at Film Brain, who felt he had no choice but to fall into step beside him.

“How are you?” Linkara asked. “I mean…no lasting injuries, are there?”

“Just one hell of a bruise,” Film Brain admitted. “Mostly on my ego.”

Linkara laughed. “Well, that will heal,” he said as they left the school building and started walking home. “Unless your teachers said something stupid again today.”

Film Brain shrugged noncommittally. “I’ll have to wait to find out,” he said.

They continued walking in silence for a while, which gave Film Brain plenty of time to wonder when the city had planted so many cherry trees. He hadn’t noticed before, but there seemed to be an awful lot of petals everywhere.

Linkara finally broke the silence. “So…what made you come here, of all places?” he asked. “I mean, the Midwest…kind of boring.”

Film Brain shrugged. “I dunno. It just sounded nice. And it’s not like I’m going to be here too much longer…I go back to England in the fall.”

“Oh.” Linkara sounded mildly disappointed. “That’s…not very long from now.”

“It’s six months,” Film Brain said. “And I’m lucky I get to stay for the summer.”

“Yeah,” Linkara said. “I guess I have no room to talk…I’ll be leaving as well…”

“Yeah, but you’ll come back,” Film Brain said. “You live here.”

“Not if I can help it,” Linkara confided. “I’d rather be traveling with a big, important orchestra than be stuck in this town forever.”

Film Brain looked around, at the neat little houses and the cherry petals falling around them, at the blue sky and green grass. “I don’t know,” he said. “This town is pretty nice. I like it, anyway.”

Linkara snorted. “That’s because you didn’t grow up here. People always say what a pretty little town we have, but everyone who grew up here swears they’ll get out one day.”

“Do they?”

He shrugged. “Some do,” he said. “But most of us go to the state college, graduate in four years with a very limited skill set, then we wind up back here with a pointless job and a plain but kind hearted wife and by the time we’re thirty, we’ve realized we can’t fight it anymore, so we go around saying what a pretty town it is.”

Film Brain couldn’t help but smile. “They say the same about my town,” he admitted. “But really…there’s nothing bad about either one. We just all want something different because we’re young and we can’t be satisfied with where we are.”

“Probably,” Linkara sighed. “But that doesn’t change anything.”

“Sure it does,” Film Brain said. “If you understand it, you can fight it.”

Linkara laughed. “Touché,” he said. “But this isn’t like just making fun of teachers. You actually have to work to get away from here.”

Film Brain smiled. “I’m sure you can do it,” he said. “If you want it that badly.”

Linkara looked down at his violin. “I think I can do it,” he said. “If I can get this music scholarship, I’m off to Boston and I’m never looking back.”

“You’ll miss it,” Film Brain said. “Just a little bit.”

“Not enough,” Linkara said.


	2. Chapter 2

It became a regular part of their schedule, walking home together after school every day, talking about this and that. They didn’t talk to each other outside that time, other than a quick “hi” in the hall if they passed each other, but it was nice enough to have someone to go home with every day.

Linkara wasn’t sure what to make of it. He liked Film Brain a lot, sure, but he wasn’t sure if they were friends or just acquaintances. He would be fine either way, but it would be nice to know.

Because the truth was Linkara liked Film Brain a lot more than he normally liked anyone. Not that Linkara was anti-social; he had plenty of friends at school. But Film Brain was different, somehow. He was cute and smart and nice, even if he was a bit stiffer than most people. But to Linkara, that was only part of the charm. And in spite of that, he was easy to talk to. Linkara found himself telling Film Brain things he would normally never confess to another person.

In fact, if Linkara had the time for such concerns, he would even consider the possibility of being more-than-friends with Film Brain. But he wasn’t sure that was an option. Linkara had homework and college applications and the all-important scholarship auditions to worry about—he didn’t need a boyfriend on top of that. Though he noticed that both his schoolwork and his violin playing had improved since he met Film Brain, but that could also be attributed to working hard. It couldn’t be because talking to Film Brain helped Linkara focus and relax about everything going on. That would just be ridiculous.

Right?

Right.

Which was why it was totally normal and not at all out of nowhere when Linkara asked if Film Brain would like to come over sometime. After all, there was nothing wrong with relaxation as long as the work got done.

Film Brain looked rather surprised when the question was asked. “Oh!” he said. “Um…not today, I have a lot of homework to do, but…maybe on Friday?”

Linkara smiled. “Okay,” he said.

So they were going to actually hang out. It didn’t mean anything. Just that they were friends, doing what friends did.

*

Film Brain didn’t know quite what to make of it. Linkara was a nice guy, sure, but he didn’t seem like the type to spontaneously ask people he had only known for two weeks to hang out with him. Still, Film Brain wasn’t going to say no. He liked Linkara, and a fifteen minute walk five days a week was not nearly enough time to spend with him.

And if he was a bit more preoccupied than usual on Friday, well, no one needed to know that.

His friend Luke noticed, of course. Luke always noticed everything. “Film Brain?” Luke asked as they sat down for lunch. “Why have your eyes gone heart shaped?”

“What?” Film Brain asked, looking in the back of a spoon. “What do you mean?”

“I mean you look all dreamy and distant like you have a date tonight,” Luke said.

“Oh,” Film Brain said. “Um…no, it’s not a date…”

“Is it that cute guy you walk home with?” Luke asked. “The violinist?”

Film Brain blushed. “Yeah,” he said. “He’s cool. We’re just hanging out.”

“Uh huh,” Luke said. “Don’t you have some big math test next week that you were swearing to study for all weekend?”

“A few hours won’t kill me,” Film Brain mumbled. “It’ll be easier to study after I’ve cooled down a bit.”

“Sure,” Luke said, smirking.

“What?”

“Admit it. You like him.”

“Of course I like him. He’s my friend.”

“You know what I mean.”

Film Brain sighed. “So what if I did?” he asked. “It doesn’t matter because we’re both very busy and even if we weren’t, in six months he’s going off to university and I’m going back to Swindon and we’ll probably never see each other again.”

“You never know,” Luke said. “You could write the epic love story, of two people who met is a shitty backwater town and fell so deeply in love that they abandoned their families and crossed the Atlantic to be together, giving up everything they ever knew just to remain with their One True Love…”

“Luke, seriously. I’m not in love with him! We’re just friends!”

“Or the tragic tale of two people who loved each other so much but were torn apart by the undefeatable forces of society and are trapped in their loss and yearning until they meet again ten years later and fall straight back in love…”

“Luke!”

“Or you could give it a shot because he’d be a great lay.”

Film Brain glared at him. “I’m not talking to you anymore,” he snapped.

*

Linkara noticed Film Brain was very quiet when they walked home that day. “You okay?” he asked. Film Brain wasn’t an overly chatty person, but he usually had something to say.

Film Brain shrugged. “Yeah,” he said. “Just…something stupid. Nothing important.”

Linkara didn’t believe him, but he decided not to pursue it. After all, silence wasn’t bad. At least, not with Film Brain.

They arrived at Linkara’s house and headed into the living room. “My parents work late,” Linkara explained. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“Not at all,” Film Brain said. “I don’t think I’m ready for the ‘where do you come from, why are you here’ survey from them.”

Linkara chuckled. “Yeah, they’d give you that,” he said. “What time do you have to be home?”

“Before dark,” Film Brain said with a shrug. “So…nine o’clock? Ten, maybe?”

“Okay,” Linkara said. They sat awkwardly for a few minutes, Linkara on the couch, Film Brain perched cautiously on an armchair. “So, um…want something to drink?” Linkara finally offered lamely.

“Sure,” Film Brain said. “Whatever you have.”

Linkara nodded and got up. He went into the kitchen and came back with two bottles of Pepsi. “It’s what we’ve got,” he said.

“That’s fine,” Film Brain said, accepting the bottle. They sat quiet for another minute, though it was less awkward now that they had something to do with their hands.

Film Brain’s eyes fell on Linkara’s violin. “You know, I’ve never actually heard you play,” he said with a slight smile.

Linkara smiled softly. “You should come to a concert sometime,” he said. “They’re free and open to the public.”

“I know,” Film Brain said. “Though I wouldn’t be able to pick you out among everyone else.”

Linkara smiled hopefully. “Well…I could play for you…if you like…I mean…” He was blushing a bit, but he did look eager.

“Please do,” Film Brain said. “I’d love to hear it…top violinist in the school and all.”

Linkara blushed deeper. “That doesn’t mean much,” he said, opening his violin case and pulling out the instrument. “Most of the violins can barely hold a bow straight.” He stood up and quickly tuned the violin. “This is Margaret,” he said, showing off his violin.

“Margaret?” Film Brain asked.

“Yeah,” Linkara said. “She’s been with me since eighth grade and has never let me down…and Margaret just felt like the right name for her…Let’s see…this is my audition piece for the scholarship I’m hoping for.” He smiled slightly before starting to play.

Film Brain settled back in the chair, feeling much more at ease now that something was happening. Linkara was truly an excellent player, and the music made Film Brain feel calm, even happy, notes flowing smoothly through the room. Linkara’s eyes were closed, his face truly serene as he played, as though this was where he belonged and the confident attitude he wore the rest of the time was merely a front.

It was beautiful. He was beautiful.

Film Brain sat enraptured until the song ended. Linkara’s eyes opened and he smiled hopefully. “What do you think?” he asked softly.

“Lovely,” Film Brain said. “Simply lovely.”

*

“Earth to Linkara! Earth to Linkara! Come in, Linkara!”

Linkara jerked out of his daydream to see his best friend Marzgurl staring at him. “What?” Linkara asked, a bit irritably.

Marzgurl raised her eyebrows. “I was asking about the physics report. You know, the one due on Wednesday that’s worth ten percent of our grade?”

“Oh,” Linkara said. “Yeah, sorry…I’ve done the intro, hypothesis, and materials…I’m going to have to look over the notes again for the procedure, but…”

Marzgurl sighed in exasperation. “Seriously, what is with you lately? You’ve been all starry-eyed and dreamy and shit...did you see a violin prettier than Margaret?”

Linkara shook his head. “There are no violins prettier than Margaret,” he said. “Though there are some people…”

Marzgurl’s eyebrows shot up even higher as her mouth split into a wide grin. “No way,” she said. “Mr. High and Mighty Married to His Violin actually has a crush?”

“I’m not married to her,” Linkara mumbled.

“Uh huh,” Marzgurl said. “That’s why you’ve assigned it a gender and given it a name.” She leaned forward eagerly. “So who is it that finally managed to excite you more than wood and strings?”

Linkara turned red. “Shut up,” he muttered.

“No, seriously,” Marzgurl said. “I know it’s not yours truly since we sorted that out long ago…” She grinned at the memory. “So who’s the lucky gal?”

Linkara sighed. “His name’s Film Brain,” he said. “He’s a sophomore.”

Marzgurl blinked, but then regained her composure. “The little blond kid I’ve seen you with after school?” she asked. “The one with the pretty eyes?”

“Yeah,” Linkara said. “That one.”

Marzgurl’s grin got even bigger. “So what are you going to do about it?”

Linkara rolled his eyes. “I wasn’t going to do anything,” he said. “We’re friends. And that’s fine.”

Marzgurl rolled her eyes right back. “Come on, Linkara. You need to loosen up. You haven’t dated anyone, or gone to a dance, or done anything fun in three and a half years unless I’ve forced you to. You spend your life writing essays and playing your violin and only going out when you can’t think of a good reason not to. You’re seventeen but you act like you’re forty. Live a little.”

“What, go out with the poor kid for six months and then say, well, see you?” Linkara snapped. “It wouldn’t last, you know that. Even if I didn’t know it would only be six months, you know I don’t make a good boyfriend. I’m too involved in my music. It’s the only thing that’s not going to go away.”

“Jesus Christ, Linkara, I’m not saying you should get married or anything,” Marzgurl said before her face softened. “Look…I know that things didn’t go well for us. We didn’t work as a couple, and that’s fine. But we’re still friends, and as your friend, I say you need someone in your life. Even if it is temporary, at least you would have tried!”

Linkara sighed. “I know,” he said quietly. “I’m just…scared. You know?”

“I know,” Marzgurl said gently. “But you can’t just wrap yourself up in a velvet-lined case and hide from the world.”

Linkara glanced across the lunchroom, where Film Brain was sitting with some other sophomores with his nose buried in _A Simple Peace._ “Okay,” Linkara said. “If he shows any interest…I’ll give it a shot.”

*

Film Brain couldn’t stand it anymore. Not only was he being forced to read the worst book he had ever come across, but he couldn’t even focus on it because his mind was always on Linkara. They were spending more time together after school, usually at Linkara’s house, watching movies and talking for hours on end, and the more they talked, the more Film Brain liked him. And it was driving him crazy.

It wasn’t just that he liked Linkara as more than a friend. It was that he couldn’t bring himself to say so. He knew that they had precious little time, and that time would be better spent as a couple, but somehow, the words could never quite leave his mouth.

But that wasn’t going to stop him. After all, words didn’t have to be spoken.

So one night, about a month after meeting Linkara, Film Brain grabbed a piece of paper and a pen and locked himself in his room. He was going to find the right words, even if it took all night.

_Dear Linkara,_

No. Too formal. It was a mash note, not a formal letter.

_Linkara—_

That was a bit better.

_I appreciate your friendship…_

Well, that sounded like a breakup note.

_I like you. Do you want to go to the spring dance with me?_

Stupid and generic.

_Do you have a date to the spring dance? Cause I don’t. And I’d like to go with you._

Awkward. He might as well talk out loud.

_Will you go out with me?_

That would work. Short and to the point.

_Film Brain._

Still a bit awkward. But it would work.

Film Brain glanced around his room, trying to find a bit of tape, but he didn’t have any. Of course.

The room he was staying in normally belonged to a girl about his age who was currently studying somewhere else. Film Brain hated to dig through her things, but he didn’t want to go downstairs just for tape. He quickly looked through the drawers, hoping she had something that would seal the paper. Finally, in the very bottom drawer, he found a half-used sheet of heart-shaped stickers.

He sighed, but it was the best he could do. He folded the letter and sealed it with one of the stickers.

Great. Now it looked like a freaking Valentine.

This could not possibly end well.


	3. Chapter 3

“Two extra hours practice, violins! ALL OF YOU!”

Linkara flinched at the anger in Mr. Finevoice’s voice and hurried out of the orchestra room before the baton was thrown at him. He couldn’t help it. He had been distracted, unable to focus on the music for the first time in his life. He was too excited by the note that he had found in his locker earlier that day.

_Will you go out with me? Film Brain._

He didn’t think there had ever been nicer words written, but he hadn’t seen Film Brain all day, so of course he couldn’t think about “Take on Me.” He was too busy trying to figure out the best way to answer.

A simple “sure” would be inadequate, but he didn’t want to go over the top with it, either. And yet, even as Mr. Finevoice glared at him, he couldn’t help grinning as he dashed down the hall as fast as he was allowed. Nothing was going to get him down. Absolutely nothing.

He spotted Film Brain almost immediately at the top of the stairs and it was all Linkara could do not to dash up and hug him immediately. But no, he had to stay calm. He didn’t want to embarrass or injure the boy, after all.

Film Brain’s eyes were downcast, his face withdrawn, and Linkara knew that the poor guy was probably going out of his mind with nerves. Linkara quickly schooled himself into a relaxed position, still grinning like an idiot. That, he couldn’t stop.

Film Brain reached the bottom of the stairs, still staring at his shoes. “Hi,” he mumbled.

“Hi,” Linkara said.

“So, um…”

“Yes.”

Film Brain looked up. “Um…”

“My answer is yes,” Linkara repeated.

Film Brain’s face split into a smile as big as Linkara’s. They stood still in the hall for several second, just staring at each other and smiling, before someone yelled at them to quit blocking the stairs.

They jumped, and Linkara laughed. “Come back with me?” he asked.

“Of course,” Film Brain said.

Linkara took Film Brain’s hand, and it was so nice, just holding hands like that. They left the school and walked home along the sidewalk, which was somehow covered in even more petals than usual. They swirled around them, landing in Film Brain’s hair and on Linkara’s hat, but that didn’t matter.

They didn’t say much on that walk home. They didn’t need to.

They didn’t sit in Linkara’s living room that day, but in his room, sprawled out on the bed. Linkara looked at Film Brain fondly. “So does this mean I actually have to go to prom?” he asked teasingly.

Film Brain grinned. “Only if you really, really want to,” he said. “Everyone tells me it’s overrated, though.”

“Yeah,” Linkara said. “Marzgurl dragged me last year. But you need to get the full American high school experience.”

Film Brain laughed. “Well, if you insist,” he said. “Though that’s almost three weeks away. I think there are other things to worry about before that.” He scowled at the book still in his hand. “Like finishing _A Simple Peace_ without strangling someone.”

Linkara nodded. “I remember that book being awful,” he said. “I think I ended up using the Sparknotes.”

“Can’t do that,” Film Brain sighed. “Mr. Oan specifically writes questions that can’t be answered with Sparknotes.”

“Ugh,” Linkara muttered. “I hate teachers who do that with boring books…I mean, I love reading, and I like a lot of books, but that one…no.”

“Same,” Film Brain sighed. “I think it’s time that the schools threw out the ‘classics’ and started putting in books we’d actually want to read.”

Linkara took the book from him and looked at it for a minute before putting it back on top of Film Brain’s bag. “Well, you don’t have to worry about that now,” he said. “Because I hereby ban any books that make you want to kick puppies from the house while we’re together.”

Film Brain laughed and laid his head on Linkara’s shoulder. “I like that rule,” he said.

*

Film Brain always tried to be to school as early as possible for a few reasons. First, he liked having the commons area as quiet as possible to finish up any homework he hadn’t gotten to the night before. Second, if he needed to see any teachers, most of them were around pretty early.

But the most important reason for him to be at school early was his business.

Upon arriving in August, Film Brain had discovered that the school vending machines did not stock non-diet soda, nor was it available in the cafeteria. When he had asked why, Luke had said something about the “Healthy Youth Initiative,” which basically meant getting any sort of sugar was impossible.

It had taken exactly two weeks for Film Brain to turn that to his advantage. Off brand soda wasn’t terribly expensive, but the other kids were still willing to buy it before school for a dollar a can. Before Christmas, Film Brain had managed to build a good clientele, and had saved quite a bit of money. He wasn’t sure what he was going to do with it, of course, but he was happy to have it.

The early-morning hours usually didn’t get busy until 7:45, so Film Brain was immensely surprised the next day when Linkara showed up and sat down next to him. “Morning,” Film Brain said with a smile. “What brings you here so early?”

“Wanted to see you,” Linkara answer smoothly. “What brings you here so early?”

“Doing business,” Film Brain said, opening his bag to reveal the day’s soda cans—one pack of root beer, one pack of strawberry, and one pack of orange. “Only a dollar a can…though for you, I’ll give a fifty percent discount.”

Linkara raised his eyebrows. “Don’t you get in trouble for that?” he asked, passing over fifty cents and accepting a can of root beer.

Film Brain shrugged. “The teachers generally turn a blind eye to it,” he said. “I mean, it’s not like I’m selling drugs.”

“Good business, then?”

“Fairly. I make a profit, anyway. I’ve saved almost $500 between this and my spending money.”

Linkara’s eyebrows shot up. “$500?” he repeated. “Don’t you do anything?”

“No,” Film Brain said. “Only thing I pay for is the soda every week, and that barely makes a dent. I sell thirty-six cans a week, more or less. It’s not a huge amount of money, but it’s good enough.”

“Yeah,” Linkara said. “So what do you plan to do with that money? Blow it all in one night of drunken debauchery?”

Film Brain laughed. “Can’t really do that,” he said. “I haven’t decided what I want to do with it yet, but I’ll do something before I go back to England. Exchange rates are shit.”

“I bet they are,” Linkara said. They sat in silence for a minute. “So…” Linkara finally said. “Um…I was wondering if you might want to see a movie Friday night? And maybe…stay over afterwards?”

“Oh!” Film Brain turned bright red. “Um…I mean…we just started going out, I don’t think…”

“Not like that!” Linkara said hastily. “Just…you know. Stay over. Talk about stuff. Watch late night TV and cuddle and stuff.”

Film Brain smiled shyly. “I’d love that,” he said.

*

Linkara had debated with himself long and hard about whether it would be polite or even expected to sit with Film Brain at lunch now, but that question was soon settled for him when Film Brain and one of his friends approached Linkara and Marzgurl’s usually mostly-empty table and sat down as though they belonged there. Well, the friend did, taking the seat next to Marzgurl with an air of confidence that Linkara wished he could pull off as convincingly.

“Luke Mochrie,” he said by way of introduction. “I’m here to make sure you’re good enough for this kid.”

Film Brain rolled his eyes as he set down his tray. “Sorry,” he muttered. “But the moment I mentioned it…”

“Don’t worry,” Linkara whispered back. “Marzgurl was threatening to do the same thing, so it looks like we can get this over with.”

Marzgurl was indeed looking at the younger boys in amusement. “Good enough for this kid?” she repeated, giving Luke a playfully insulted look. “Let me tell you, he’s the best guy I ever dated.”

Linkara rolled his eyes. “That’s not what you said at the time,” he said dryly.

“Well, that was before I’d dated anyone else,” she snapped back.

“Charming,” Luke said dryly. “But I’ve heard about the guys you’ve dated, Marzgurl, and that’s hardly a recommendation.”

“What are you talking about?” Marzgurl asked. “That’s a great recommendation!”

Luke rolled his eyes and turned back to Linkara. “Anyway,” he said. “This is the part where I ask about your intentions and threaten grievous bodily harm if you answer wrong.”

“My intentions are good,” Linkara said. He glanced at Film Brain. “I intend to be nice and not do anything off-putting or douchey. Happy?”

“That’s a good start,” Luke agreed.

“Same question,” Marzgurl said, looking at Film Brain.

“Same answer,” Film Brain shot back.

“Good.” Marzgurl grinned. “Hope you like violin music. Cause you’re going to hear a lot of it.”

“I love it when Linkara plays,” Film Brain said. “He’s the best I’ve heard.”

Marzgurl’s smile grew. “You have my permission to date him,” she announced.

Linkara threw a napkin at her.

*

Film Brain could hardly sit still. It was the final class of the day on Friday, and while that normally wasn’t enough to get him antsy, today was different.

Today he and Linkara were going on their first official date and he would get to spend the entire night with his new boyfriend.

Film Brain wasn’t eager to go too far with Linkara, of course, but he couldn’t stop himself from thinking in that direction. They held hands a lot, but they had never kissed, and Film Brain was both hoping for and dreading that it would happen tonight.

On the one hand, kissing Linkara had to be a wonderful experience, because everything about Linkara was wonderful. On the other hand, Film Brain was completely unsure of his own skill at that task and was worried that he would fuck it up and make Linkara decide that he wasn’t worth it.

Film Brain hated to admit it, but he had never actually kissed anyone before. He had never met anyone he would like to kiss before Linkara, and the thought of kissing Linkara was both terrifying and exciting, and it was all Film Brain could do to not start sighing dreamily right there in class.

“All right, class, your assignment is to read chapters six through eight for Monday,” Mr. Oan said. “That’s only one chapter a night, so there are no excuses for not finishing!”

The bell rang just as Mr. Oan finished speaking and Film Brain was up like a shot, stuffing _A Separate Peace_ into his bag and hurrying out the door. He could barely keep himself from running down the hall, grinning ear to ear and just managing to avoid hitting anyone.

He got to the stairs and of course, slipped on the first one, tumbling the rest of the way down.

Because there was no better way to start a date than with a few more bruises.

He hit the ground at full force, flinching as he squeezed his eyes shut. God, he was such an idiot.

“Film Brain!”

Linkara was by him, his hand on Film Brain’s forehead. “Are you okay?” he asked in a panic.

Film Brain’s eyes opened and he smiled widely at the sight of his boyfriend’s concerned eyes. “Yeah,” he said. “I’m bloody fantastic!”

“You just fell down the stairs!” Linkara exclaimed. “Again!”

Film Brain sat up. “I know,” he said. “But it’s such a wonderful day that I don’t even care!”

Linkara still looked worried, though he did manage a small smile of his own. “It is wonderful,” he agreed. He took Film Brain’s hand and helped him stand up. “Are you sure you’re okay, though? No concussion? No broken bones?”

“No,” Film Brain said. “Just the usual bruises.” He smiled eagerly. “I’m fine, really. And I’m super-excited about tonight!”

Linkara’s smile grew. “So am I,” he said. “So let’s get moving.”

They left the school hand in hand and walked back to Linkara’s to drop off their bags. “So what movie were you thinking of seeing?” Film Brain asked as they walked.

Linkara shrugged. “Whatever you want. I’m not too picky.”

Film Brain thought for a moment. “I think Robocop is still out,” he said. “I mean…that’s the only thing I was even remotely excited about.”

“Sounds good to me,” Linkara said with a smile.

*

If anyone had asked Linkara what Robocop was actually about, he would not have been able to tell them. He had a vague idea that it was a fairly silly action film, but all of that was lost to the fact that he was on a date with Film Brain, and they were holding hands in the back of the theater, and he was so deliriously happy that he could hardly focus on anything else.

But when Film Brain asked afterwards what he thought, Linkara swore up and down that it was the best film he had ever seen.

It was obvious that he hadn’t been paying any attention. But that didn’t matter, because they were heading back to Linkara’s, and both of their minds were on things beyond a movie.

They got back to Linkara’s quickly, shouted a quick greeting to his parents, and immediately retreated to Linkara’s bedroom, where they both sat down on the bed.

“I had a nice time,” Film Brain said awkwardly.

“So did I,” Linkara said. They sat there for another minute before Linkara found his courage. “Film Brain?”

“Yeah?”

“Can I kiss you?”

Film Brain smiled shyly. “Of course you can,” he whispered breathlessly.

Linkara nodded once before he moved closer and pressed his lips to Film Brain’s gently. It was sweet, soft, chaste, warm…perfect.

Film Brain pressed back, his hand moving to Linkara’s knee as Linkara’s arms wrapped around his waist. They stayed that way for a while, their lips moving gently against each other’s before they pulled apart.

Film Brain started giggling nervously as Linkara grinned sheepishly. “So…” he said.

“Do it again,” Film Brain ordered.

Linkara did, pulling Film Brain closer. Film Brain moaned slightly and pushed Linkara backwards so he was lying on his back with Film Brain on top of him, their bodies pressed fully together. Film Brain’s mouth opened a little bit and so did Linkara’s. They kissed deeper, their hands moving over necks and chests, but never any further than that. Not tonight.

Finally, they broke apart and Film Brain moved off of Linkara, lying next to him with his head on Linkara’s chest. Linkara wrapped his arms around Film Brain’s shoulders. “It’s way too early to go to sleep,” Linkara muttered.

“Yeah,” Film Brain agreed. “But this is nice.”

“Yeah,” Linkara said. “It really is.”

*

Film Brain let out a deep sigh of contentment. He and Linkara had been dating for two whole weeks, and he couldn’t remember feeling happier.

Of course, his current position didn’t hurt. He and Linkara were out in the school yard since the school had finally decided that it was warm enough to allow them outside during lunch. Linkara was leaning against the flagpole and Film Brain was lying on the grass with his head in Linkara’s lap. Luke and Marzgurl were sitting nearby, arguing about something, but Film Brain couldn’t bring himself to care less about it.

“By the way,” Linkara said. “Prom tickets go on sale Monday.”

“Oh yeah,” Film Brain said.

“Do you want to go?”

“Of course.”

“Good.” Linkara ran his fingers absently through Film Brain’s hair. “I can’t imagine it will be a great night, but we can at least make it interesting.”

“Be optimistic,” Film Brain said. “After all, it can’t be all bad if I get to spend it with you.”

“I’m a terrible dancer.”

“So am I.” Film Brain smiled. “So you’ll be in good company.”

“He’s always in good company,” Marzgurl said. “No one in this school can dance. They all just start dry humping and calling it dance.”

“They do it to a beat,” Luke pointed out. “That has to count for something.”

“It’s disgusting,” Marzgurl said. “It’s just a giant orgy with fancy clothes.”

“So I take it you won’t be there?” Luke asked.

She shrugged. “I’ll probably go,” she said. “I mean, senior prom and everything. Though my fallback date has been taken.” She glared playfully at Linkara.

“Cheer up,” Linkara said. “There’s got to be some guy left in this school who’s not a colossal douchebag.”

“My options are fairly thin,” she said.

There was an awkward pause and then Luke said, “You know, I’m available…”

Marzgurl looked at him with her eyebrows raised. “Are you asking me on a date?” she asked bluntly.

“No!” Luke said quickly. “I’m just saying, if you really want a date to the prom, I’m not going with anyone and it would probably be less awkward to go with me than to go with the lovebirds over there!”

Marzgurl stared at him for a moment before glancing at Linkara and Film Brain, who both grinned at her. Finally, she sighed. “Oh, all right,” she said. “I suppose I could do worse.”

“Much worse,” Film Brain said. “You dated this guy.”

Linkara and Marzgurl laughed and Luke gave Marzgurl a small smile.

*

“You okay?” Film Brain asked as they walked home Monday afternoon.

“Yeah,” Linkara said distractedly. “Just trying to think through the solo I got in orchestra.”

“For ‘Take on Me’?” Film Brain asked.

“Yeah,” Linkara said. “It’s more complicated than I realized.”

Film Brain smiled. “I’m sure it will be great.”

“I hope so,” Linkara said. He shook himself and smiled. “I got prom tickets, by the way. So just pick up a tux and we should be all right.”

Film Brain laughed. “I don’t know where to get a tux,” he said. “Or what color to get.”

“I can take you when I get mine,” Linkara said. “And I was planning to just go with black.”

“But that’s so boring!” Film Brain said jokingly. “We should get something like neon orange or electric green! Just to mix it up a bit!”

Linkara laughed as they started crossing the street. “I don’t think that would look good,” he said. “If we got a color, it would have to be blue. To match your...”

“Linkara!”

Film Brain reacted instinctively as he saw a car coming straight toward them and not slowing down. He grabbed Linkara’s arm and pulled him away. The shock and force was enough that Linkara’s grip on his violin case slipped and the violin hit the street as Film Brain dragged Linkara back to the sidewalk.

Linkara tried to pull away and dash back after it, but Film Brain’s grip was too strong and the car was coming too fast. There was a sickening crunch and the car drove off, leaving a pile of broken wood and plastic behind.

There was a silence as Linkara pulled away from Film Brain and dashed back into the street, looking at the broken violin. Film Brain ran after him. “I…I…” he started.

“I could have gotten to her!” Linkara snapped. “If I had come back, they would have stopped…”

“You would have died!” Film Brain said. “Linkara, it’s just an instrument…I know they can be expensive, but…”

“She wasn’t just an instrument!” Linkara shouted. “She was my friend! My partner!” There were tears running down his face now. “And now she’s gone.”

Film Brain stared at him. “Linkara…”

“Leave me alone,” he snapped, walking away quickly.

Film Brain caught up to him. “Linkara, I’m sorry,” he said. “But…I mean, you can replace it…”

“Go away,” he snapped. “It’s your fault! You should have just warned me and not yanked me back like that!”

Film Brain felt his anger rising. “You were about to get hit by a car!” he said. “And I can’t replace you! You know, sometimes I think you care more about that violin than you do about actual people!”

“GO AWAY!” Linkara shouted.

Film Brain stared for a moment before he turned and hurried off, tears in his eyes. Linkara watched him go before trudging back to his house, wondering how he was going to explain this to his parents and where they were going to find the money to replace it.


	4. Chapter 4

It only took a few hours for Linkara’s anger at Film Brain to fade, though he didn’t know what to do. He wasn’t sure if he should call him, or if Film Brain would even want to talk to him. He knew that he had been irrational, but he couldn’t help it.

It didn’t help that his parents had not been happy at the news. They hadn’t been angry, per se, but they had said that a new violin was not in the budget and Linkara would have to make do with borrowing one from the school until his birthday money came in.

Linkara couldn’t understand it. Everything had been going so well, and now…now, he had nothing. Normally when he was upset, he would play for hours on end, but of course he couldn’t do that now, so he was left to wallow in his own misery all night long.

The next morning, he got up early and went to school well before the bell. But he didn’t go to the lunchroom, still not ready to face Film Brain yet. Instead, he went to the orchestra room and grabbed one of the school violins. He might as well get used to it now.

He was well into his solo for “Take on Me” when Mr. Finevoice came in. Linkara barely even noticed, playing furiously in the hopes of clearing his mind with little success.

“Sounds good, kid,” Mr. Finevoice said when Linkara stopped playing. “But what happened to your violin?”

“Got run over by a car,” Linkara muttered. “And I can’t get a new one until August.”

Mr. Finevoice made a sympathetic noise. “I’m sorry, kid,” he said. “I know losing an instrument is rough.”

Linkara nodded, tears starting up again. Mr. Finevoice frowned. “Okay, what else?” he asked.

Linkara hesitated. “I…I also had a fight with my boyfriend,” he mumbled.

Mr. Finevoice sat down next to him. “That’s even rougher,” he said.

Linkara nodded again. “It’s just…” he began. “I knew he was always going to be temporary…I’m going to college soon, and he’s going back to England…it was never going to last. But I thought that Margaret would be there forever…that I’d have her when things got rough…but now I don’t, and I don’t think anything can replace her.”

Mr. Finevoice was quiet for a moment. “Let me ask you something, kid,” he finally said. “Do you really want to play the violin for the rest of your life? Join an orchestra, travel the country, maybe get famous enough to show up on All Things Considered for ten minutes, never settling anywhere for too long before you’re off again?”

Linkara looked up, confused. “I…I don’t know,” he finally admitted.

“Exactly,” Mr. Finevoice said. “Now, an instrument can be replaced if you really want it. It gets hit by a car, pounded into a million pieces, you can go to the music store and pick up a new one that will be almost exactly the same. People you can’t replace. They get hit, they get broken, and they’re done. You can’t get a new one, because…because there was always something unique about them.”

“Sir…”

“And if you like this guy, you’ll tell him so,” Mr. Finevoice concluded. “Sure, you may only have a few more months together, but they’re months you’ll never get back with a person you can’t replace.”

The school bell rang and Mr. Finevoice stood up. “So you think about that,” he said.

*

Film Brain sighed. It had been two days and Linkara hadn’t spoken to him. He felt awful, not just about the broken violin, but about the fact that Linkara was so upset about it.

He hated seeing Linkara upset. And he knew the way to make it better.

It only took a few minutes on Google to find the right place. A quick count of the revenue from his soda sales proved that it was feasible. So he grabbed the bike that normally belonged to the teenage girl whose room he was living in and headed downtown.

The salesman was rather surprised at how specific the order was, even more surprised when it was paid in full using cash, but Film Brain didn’t care. After all, this was his choice, and he couldn’t think of a better way to spend this money. At the end, he still had about a hundred dollars left, enough to rent the tux he would need on Saturday.

But he didn’t stop for more than a minute before he headed toward Linkara’s house. After all, if he didn’t fix this now, there wouldn’t be a Saturday.

He knocked on the door eagerly. Linkara’s mom answered. “Oh, hi, Film Brain,” she said. “Linkara’s upstairs.” Her eyes fell on the object in his hand and widened. “You didn’t…”

“Don’t worry about it,” he said. “I…I want him to be happy.”

“That must have cost a lot,” she said. “I don’t know if we can really accept it.”

“It’s up to him, Mrs. Lovhaug,” Film Brain said. “I wanted to get it.”

She looked at him for a moment, and Film Brain swore she was almost crying. “All right,” she said. “Thank you.”

He smiled at her and went up the stairs. He took a deep breath before knocking on Linkara’s door.

“Linkara?” he called. “Can I come in?”

There was a pause, then the door opened to reveal Linkara looking confused and sad and a little bit hopeful. “Sure,” he said.

Film Brain entered the room, conscious of what he was holding in his hand. “Look,” he said. “I’m…I’m sorry about what happened and…”

“No, I’m sorry,” Linkara said. “It wasn’t your fault. I shouldn’t have gotten mad at you.”

“That’s not important,” Film Brain said. “What’s important is that…that you’re happy. So…” He held out the case. “I got you this.”

Linkara stared for a moment before reaching out and grasping the handle. He set it down on his bed and opened the case.

Inside was a beautiful violin, different than Margaret had been, but of the same quality. He slowly picked it up, holding it more delicately than if it were made of glass. He looked at Film Brain. “You shouldn’t have,” he said.

“I wanted to,” Film Brain answered. “I mean…I raised all that money from soda sales…I had to spend it on something nice. And what’s nicer than having you be happy?”

“You could have gotten anything,” Linkara said. “Anything at all.”

“Don’t even start,” Film Brain said. “This is what I wanted to get. Because…” He hesitated for a moment. “Because now, whenever you play, I’ll know you’re playing for me. And even after I go home, after this is over…I’ll know that. I’ll know you’re thinking of me, and that you’re happy. And that’s better than anything I could have gotten for myself.”

Linkara stared at him for a moment before throwing his arms around him, pulling Film Brain close, the violin hitting the smaller boy’s back. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“You’re very welcome,” Film Brain said. He hugged Linkara back for a moment before pulling away. “So let’s hear that fantastic solo.”

Linkara smiled and picked up the new bow. He ran the resin over it, tuned the violin, and began to play.

*

_Take on me!  
Take on me!_   
_Take me on!_   
_Take on me!_   
_I’ll be gone_   
_In a day or two!_

The music was too loud, the room was too crowded, and Linkara had been right—he was a terrible dancer. And yet it was still one of the best nights of his life.

Luckily, on the edge of the dance floor it was possible to stay relatively far away from the writhing mass of cool kids who didn’t understand why their prom had been hijacked by a song from the 1980s, though all of the orchestra kids understood. They all glared at Linkara whenever they saw him, but he didn’t care. He was dancing with his boyfriend as awkwardly and enthusiastically as possible, and no one was going to stop them

“You will come to my concert, right?” he asked as he and Film Brain danced.

“Of course I will,” Film Brain said. “I never want to miss any of your solos.”

Linkara smiled sadly and Film Brain knew what was on his mind. He smiled back and leaned up to kiss Linkara’s cheek.

“Don’t worry,” he continued. “Sure, we’ll be apart for a while, but…I have Skype. And an e-mail address. We can stay in touch…and maybe I’ll come back for uni, or you’ll get picked up by a symphony and come tour in England or…something. I don’t know. But I do know that we will meet again.”

“Yeah,” Linkara said. “This is nowhere near the end. Even if we’re not together, I’ll always know. Whenever I see a heart-shaped sticker, or smell cherry blossoms, or play the violin, you’ll be there. And that’s enough.”

“That’s more than enough.”

They glanced at the chaperones, who weren’t paying any attention to them, and then they leaned in and their lips met for a moment.

“Hey!” They broke apart to see Luke and Marzgurl nearby. “Break it up, you two,” Luke said. “No one wants to see that.”

“Well, no one wants to see you, but we’re not complaining,” Film Brain snarked back.

Linkara and Marzgurl laughed and Luke grinned good naturedly.

Yes, it was a good night.


End file.
